Talk:How I Met Your Mother

What's the deal with Ted and the "mother"?

The show is a study in misdirection. Viewers are making assumptions based on what they being led to believe. Future Ted calling the children "kids" doesn't make them his kids. Talking about their mother doesn't mean their mother is his wife. The children could be Barney's kids or they could be the children of Marshall and Lily. And "Aunt" Robin could be the wife of "Uncle" Ted! There are any number of plausible scenarios which would allow Robin and Ted to be married.

Hey, that's an interesting theory! I would never have thought have that! JaredW! 12:06, 28 February 2006 (UTC)

A little too far fetched, especially when you consider the episode regarding Ted in a strip bar and the future version of himself saying "... and that's how I met your mother." with the kids' reactions being a little too personal. I don't think an uncle would go so far as to screw with the kids in such a manner, let alone perpetuate such an elaborate ruse just to continue telling a story. 65.145.213.126 05:20, 5 March 2006 (UTC)

Looks like this episode that is airing as I type this just effectively shot the whole uncle angle to hell. 4.224.165.193 01:38, 21 March 2006 (UTC)

I agree that it the relationships are intentionally made unclear by using ambiguous terminology, but the opening episode opens with Future Ted saying, "25 years ago, before I was 'Dad', I had this whole other life." Within the same episode, Barney and Marshall are both refered to as "your uncle" and Robin is of course revealed as "your aunt." But the real nail in the coffin is in the opening of the second episode when the girl says, "Oh Dad.." in response to Ted telling Robin "I think I love you." Therfore, we know that the girl is in fact the narrators daughter (however we have no definitive proof of anything for the boy but since he is there everytime, he is either the son or the daughters boyfriend). On a sidenote, perhaps this what makes this show more interesting than the average sitcom I watch. Scott Dial 23:40, 17 May 2006 (UTC)

I've been trying to think of a way in which Ted and Robin end up together, as Aunt Robin could be itself a ruse, designed to throw viewers of what would otherwise be the obvious track that Robin is the kids mother. Ted's meeting Robin, and everything else, must somehow go to explain "How I met your mother", otherwise they are just random stories spliced together, like any other sitcom - which it could very well be but for the over arching premise that all these stories are supposed to explain an eventual outcome. - 01:50, 30 June 2006 (UTC)

That will not happen, as Future Ted has referred to the boy as "son," and the girl has called him "Dad." It was an interesting theory though.

This part of the discussion is pretty much over, with the second season finale. Ted reveals that he and Robin did not get married, and that Robin traveled the world. Furthermore, with Marshall and Lily being officially married, the discussion below also is no longer pertinent. Especially with him also using "Uncle" or "Aunt" for Marshall, Lily, and Barney.Eldude611 20:52, 15 May 2007 (UTC)

Your Mother = Lily?

Has Ted ever referred to Lily as "Aunt Lily" to his kids? I don't watch this show that much but I've caught one episode, I was just wondering if Ted and Lily will eventually hook up... from that point of view, the whole show could be about how their relationship developed Jeff schiller 09:08, 18 August 2006 (UTC)

This theory has occurred to me, too, and I think it is semi-likely...of course, he and Lily have already "met", but the idea has potential. I think this would be a great way for the series to go...the idea of simply bringing in a character is kind of a cop-out... acepilot87@hotmail.com

A recent episode ended with the line "...and that's the story of how your Aunt Lily furnished her apartment." 209.42.59.161 19:18, 20 October 2006 (UTC)

A lot of conterversy arose over the episode of "Okay Awesome" where at the end Lily switches her head from Marshall shoulder to Ted. Ted then smiles and Marshall gives him a "okay shrug". A lot of people thought that meant that Lily and Ted would eventually hook up. But i nthe commentary on the episode the writers and actors denie it and the fact that Marshall and Lily are now married (after season 2) i highly doubt it Hammerkid14 20:25, 28 July 2007 (UTC)

Theme Song

Does anyone know what the Theme Song to this show is?Ags412 00:08, 17 October 2006 (UTC)

I posted a few weeks ago to see if anyone knew the name of the Theme Song for the show. I'm pretty sure it's a Beach Boys song, but I can't do a lyric search because "Bah bah bah" doesn't give much back. So my research efforts have come to a dead end. Is there anyone who can help? Any CBS people check this page by chance? I couldn't find it on the official site, maybe I'm missing something. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.Ags412 04:00, 2 November 2006 (UTC)

As listed in the infobox, the theme song is "Hey Beautiful" by The Solids. Shannernanner 04:16, 2 November 2006 (UTC)

I added "Your Mother" as a minor character

Everyone, the name of the show is How I Met Your Mother, so it stands to reason that "the Mother" should be listed as a character in this show, although, as of October, 2006, she is unseen. ProfessorPaul 03:47, 31 October 2006 (UTC)

I suspect she will only be introduced in the last few minutes of the last episode of the show. --Purpleslog 06:27, 22 November 2006 (UTC)

I agree. Ted has i always refered how he "met" there mother not dated or married. Because season three will mostl likely be the last thanks to CBS ex's we will probably meet the "mother" at the end of the very last episode Hammerkid14 20:28, 28 July 2007 (UTC)

External links

The IMDb and official site links are included in the infobox; please don't also link to them in the external links section. Thanks. Shannernanner 15:55, 1 November 2006 (UTC)

Woh, ok, I get your point you don't need to make a huge display because of my one little mistake. All you had to do was say the links weren't needed because they were in the infobox. Tartan 20:56, 1 November 2006 (UTC)

I'm not sure what you mean by a "huge display," but if you are referring to my posting on the talk page, if repeated reversions are made which are not cases of vandalism it is recommended that they be discussed on the talk page, and you are not the only user who has tried to reinsert the links into the external links section. This is just a note of reminder and explanation, not an offense directed at you. Shannernanner 22:35, 1 November 2006 (UTC)

Probably ought to add http://howimetyourblog.com/ to the external links section, especially if the rumors of the show's cancellation are true, as a notable fansite participating in a renewal campaign is fairly noteworthy. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 72.79.82.48 (talk) 01:35, 7 April 2007 (UTC).

Trivia Section

I cleaned up a redundant entry in the Trivia section, but the section in general needs cleanup, as a few of the entries are really weak, compared to the rest of the article. Zipster 00:46, 22 November 2006 (UTC)

I've also removed the entry saying that the word awesome is used in Series 1. 87.254.69.18 00:24, 29 December 2006 (UTC)

Was it right to remove this entry? The word 'awesome' is used in just about every episode in Season 1. It certainly seems to be a catchphrase of the show.Jamesb1 14:22, 29 December 2006 (UTC)

I am about to reinstate the "HIMYM in other media" section. Someone removed it, citing it as trivia. I would point out that 1) trivia should be (ideally) integrated into to articles rather than deleted and 2) references in other media (or other forms of the same media, as this case is)) are valid to point out how a show (or other piece of art/narrative) are impacting or have impacted cultural norms. I would expect an article on M*A*S*H (I have not looked up that article) to mention popular spoofs, at least as examples of themes and their impact on other shows and the like. Also, there was no discussion on that section or its deletion. So, yeah. reverted. --LKAdriaan 06:26, 6 October 2007 (UTC)

Split the article

I've split the character section into a separate article List of characters from How I Met Your Mother. As it stood, it was large impossible to read with large paragraphs of unrelated information. There were also items in the trivia section that related to the actors portraying the characters, but didn't seem to fit in the character section. They are now incorporated in the character bios. Evil Monkey - Hello 04:59, 29 January 2007 (UTC)

Joss Whedon

Much as I like Joss Whedon, should an entire quarter of this article be dedicated to vaguely interesting casting coincidences? It's surely only worth a point in a trivia section. Nick Fel 15:06, 14 February 2007 (UTC)

In a TV show like Law and Order--one that has a rotating cast and numerous weekly guest-stars--it is pretty common to see numerous actors from other series. If a L&O episode had a former cast-member from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, big deal; if had two in a single episode, maybe that would be a coincidence. However, an actor such as Harry Groener is slightly above accepting sitcom appearances with a single line. These actors are instantly recognizable to Buffy fans, and even the smallest appearances effectively count as "stunt-casting." (Alyson Hannigan was responsible for the casting her husband, Alexis Denisof, as pompous newscaster Sandy Rivers.) The Crew section may be more of a coincidence since, although the former Buffy actors are all friends, they may necessarily be friends with the people who work in post-production. However, the people behind the camera are just as important to a show's success as the people in front of it, and it would be unfair to exclude them.

That being said, this section was created back when it still followed the Characters section, which has since gotten its own page. If you feel that this part is better suited for the Characters page, that's a fair argument. --hypercritic 08:46, 20 February 2007 (UTC)

I'm not suggesting that it's uninteresting or misplaced... just that it's given far too much depth and article space for what it is. I propose that a more appropriate length would be a trivia point something like this:

Several cast and crew members on How I Met Your Mother have previously worked in projects created by Joss Whedon (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly and Serenity), most notably Alyson Hannigan, who played Willow Rosenberg in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. Her real-life husband Alexis Denisof (Sandy Rivers), also appeared in both shows. Other actors who have guest started in HIMYM include, Amy Acker, Tom Lenk, Morena Baccarin and Harry Groener, while Daniel Carrington, Rick Cortes, Bob Myers were part of the crew for both Buffy and HIMYM. Nick Fel 12:56, 20 February 2007 (UTC)

That's a fair point. If nitpicking HIMYM/Buffy fans don't have other problems with it, I'd be fine with that change.--hypercritic 17:48, 25 February 2007 (UTC)

The Slap Bet

The episode "Stuff" ended with Marshall using one of his five slaps from "Slap Bet." Should the article include a section on the slap bet as a recurring element of the show?

Can someone provide a ref for the "Slap Bet Counter"? Anxiously looking forward to it. J-stan ^Talk_Contribs 22:21, 12 August 2007 (UTC)

Recurring Elements

Inspired by anon above, I'll start a Recurring Elements section: after close to two seasons, there definitely are a few. Zipster 16:19, 24 February 2007 (UTC)

"Hommage" to Friends

Giving all the references, identical jokes and situation between the 2 TV shows, I was wondering if one could start a section about that. The interesting part would be a kind of investigation about the creation of the show and to find out if the the creators of HIMYM have any contact or relationship with the creators of Friends.

Uncomprehensive list of common points :

• Clear reference of Friends' coffee shop in the introduction of episode 207
• Some of the main characters (Friends : Joey, Chandler, Monica and Phoebe | HIMYM : Lily and Marshall) being stucked in a room (F: bedroom | H: bathroom) while 2 other main characters (F: Ross and Rachel | H: Robin and Ted) occupy the main room doing emotionnally intense things (F: arguing | H: making out).
• One of the main characters (F: Monica | H: Lily) is working in a theme restaurant and the other characters come and make fun of her.
• We can never know what is the job of one of the characters (F: Chandler | H: Barney)
• One of the characters has a huge success with girls (F: Joey | H: Barney)

—The preceding unsigned comment was added by Sseb22 (talk • contribs) 4 June 2007.

A late reply. My guess is that you could replace Friends with any number of sitcoms. The first reference seems rather tenuous, and I think was more a reference to Starbucks than Central Perk. Chanlder's job was known in the series ("Statistical analysis and data reconfiguration") --- the joke was that no one could remember it ("transponster!!"). Other sitcoms have had ladies men (Sam Malone (Cheers), Dr. Guy Secretan (Green Wing)). Lots of sitcoms share jokes and situations. Evil Monkey - Hello 03:12, 11 July 2007 (UTC)

I would like to add that when Marshall and Lily are stuck in bathroom its Ted and Victoria in the living room not Ted and Robin. And i believe that there are a lot of similarities between the two shows, but How i Met your mother is its own show not just some filler for Friends. If you do that then that needs to be stated. Hammerkid14 20:07, 30 July 2007 (UTC)

Most of those situations are common elements in sitcoms. An argument could probably be made for weird references like "vomit free since '93" Ted and Jerry Seinfeld's claims of a long period with vomiting in The Masseuse or the Chandler/Barney job thing. Perhaps a section on "homages to past sitcoms"? —Preceding unsigned comment added by LKAdriaan (talk • contribs) 01:38, 20 September 2007 (UTC)

Robin Sparkles External Links

Given the viral nature of the Robin Sparkles video, it seems very appropriate for external links. The fake myspace page created by CBS also seems worthy.

• official CBS posting of Robin Sparkles video on You Tube
• MySpace Page

Rtphokie 02:50, 11 July 2007 (UTC)

No one seems to have a problem with this. I'm going to go ahead and add these links Rtphokie 16:23, 14 July 2007 (UTC)

"Pilot" section

Should this section be renamed "Story" or "Background", because it seems odd to have a section about the pilot that only covers the background of the story. J-stan ^Talk_Contribs 00:38, 3 September 2007 (UTC)

Cider House Rules

Okay, I have been meaning to post something about this. Has anybody noticed a bunch of references to The Cider House Rules by John Irving. I wish i could cite the episodes i saw it in. I will have to watch the first season again and take notes. There were many references but the only one i clearly remember was some episode in the first season, Barney says to Ted, "Shit or get off the pot." There were many more!

Anybody else catch these?